Resume & CV FAQs and answers
Q: Does a CV always need to be only one page?
A: CV length should not exceed two sides of A4. How much of those two
sides you fill depends on how much you have done. Undergraduates and
school leavers may be hard pushed to fill two sides of A4 simply because
they may not have very much experience, if this is the case one side
of A4 will suffice. Conversely candidates who have established a career
history will have to be selective as to what they include so that it
all fits on, in this case make sensible use of margin and paragraph
sizes.
Q: Should the
education section always be near the top?
A: If you still are in or have recently completed formal education your
academic achievements will form a major part of your qualifications,
and it is recommended to place these near the top of your CV. Also some
industries, notably communications, value related experience above degree
work and therefore, place your academic qualifications further down
the page.
Q: Is an objective always necessary?
A: No, it is not crucial, however an employer will be impressed if you
have a focused idea of where you want your career to be heading, especially
if it is in line with their planned development.
Q: What if I
haven't done very much to fill up my CV?
A: This does not matter, everyone has to start somewhere, if sparse
content is a problem use sensible formatting and fonts so that you comfortably
fill one side of A4.
Q: Do hobbies
and personal interests need to be shown?
A: It is not imperative to show your interests however it can provide
an employer with an insight into your personality.
Q: Must references
be included?
A: It is advisable not too include references as part of your CV. A
small note stating that 'References available on request' will be sufficient.
Q: What should
be on my CV?
A: Contact details, Date of birth and nationality, an introduction,
previous employment history, academic qualifications, hobbies and interests.
A: Religion, references, sexuality, why you left your previous jobs, all your school grades, a photo, lies.
A: No, just the most recent
A: Contact details at the top, a brief introduction, employment history, education, interests hobbies.
A: The best quality that you can get your hands on, but use common sense, do not get paper that is too thick.
A: If you want to be sure that the recipient can read your submission then sending a txt attachment is recommended. However this format does not allow you to include attractive formatting. Most offices have MS Office applications, and so a Word document will probably be suitable. PDF files take up more memory, but if you are applying for design industry jobs and have a highly stylised CV then this could be the best format. If you want to be certain you could paste a txt version of your CV into the body of the e-mail as well as attaching a Word or PDF version.
Q: How can I
ensure that my CV will be read?
A: CVs usually aren't read at first, they are scanned. With that in
mind you should build your CV to be easily scanned by sight:
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Present information in concise, compact statements. Avoid large blocks of text.
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Organise your information so that the reader doesn't have to hunt for your skills.
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Use fonts and text styles consistently to provide visual structure to your document.
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Leave plenty of white space so it isn't cluttered.
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Sprinkle industry buzzwords and use fresh, positive language.
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Leave irrelevant, unnecessary or inappropriate information off your CV.
A: Construct a 'core CV' using the 'How to write a killer CV' guide then configure that to the recipient each time you send it out. Refer to the articles Tailoring your CV and Targeting your CV
A: Ten years is usually sufficient. Go back further and you run the risk of rambling on with irrelevant information or, worse, dating yourself.
